USTABE

In the South people tend to shorten statements and words whenever possible. We save a lot of time in the South by doing so, although we are also prone to speak slowly and add a few syllables here and there, so any time saved is often lost later in the same sentence. Ustabe is an example of a Southern contraction. “I ustabe faster than I am now.” A cousin of ustabe is ustacould. “I ustacould eat doughnuts all day long and not gain weight. I ustabe skinny but now I aintnomore.” O.K., maybe it’s only my relatives that speak like this, but regional dialects are not the point of this treatise. Whether you say “ustabe” or “used to be” is a matter of choice. The real intent isn’t on contractions but on statements of past performance. When a person says they were formerly able to do something it suggests they cannot do so any longer. To some degree this makes sense as the natural life cycle of aging necessitates the reduction of many actions. A person over a certain age cannot do all of the things they were able to do twenty years earlier. Aging brings restrictions that are often hard to overcome. Dreaming dreams of a better future and goal setting should not be added to that list however. This would be true for people of any age.

Ustabe is not a derivative of the Greek language. The closest thing to this in scripture might read “I ustabe an unrepentant sinner and now I’m free in Christ.” As they say in the trade, “that’ll preach.” We are to be new creatures in Christ and as such we must have a future focus. Dwelling on past failures is not productive to spiritual growth. Focusing on past accomplishments and assuming we no longer have what it takes to make a difference is simply unscriptural. There is no retirement age for our faith lives. There is also no such thing as too small a contribution to God’s Kingdom. It doesn’t take a village to progress a church, it takes a congregation. Congregation is plural and implies everyone. All people have something to share and to contribute. But, God won’t make us do anything. Having a future view and seeking to make a difference is entirely up to us. Coasting is allowed but is not encouraged. Too much coasting will ultimately lead to a ustabe church.

It’s not the mountain we conquer but ourselves. Sir Edmund Hillary

None of us will ever accomplish excellence except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Let us not cease to do the utmost, that we may incessantly go forward in the way of the Lord; and let us not despair of the smallness of our accomplishments. John Calvin

MM (ustabe lost but I aintnomore)